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Tesla Credits or Supercharging credits: which one did your referral pay, and what can it buy?
Two wallets, two sets of rules — and the UK version has a payment rule that catches people at the Supercharger and the service desk.
Short answer
In the US, Tesla's terms say referral benefits are added as Tesla Credits. In the UK, they're added as Supercharging credits or Tesla Credits depending on the car. Both expire 12 months after the Grant Date; UK Supercharging credits can be extended up to 36 months. Neither is cash.
Two kinds of reward, one program
Tesla's Refer and Earn program pays out in two forms. Tesla Credits are an account balance you spend inside Tesla's own systems. Supercharging credits pay for charging and nothing else. Which one you get depends on the country and, in the UK, on the car that was bought.
This page sets the US and UK terms side by side, because they're the two versions we've read in full. If you're elsewhere, skip to other countries.
| US — Tesla Credits | UK — Supercharging credits | UK — Tesla Credits | |
|---|---|---|---|
| When you get it | “Depending on the qualifying product,” referrer or buyer benefits “will be added as Tesla Credits” | “Depending on the Tesla vehicle purchased,” referrer and buyer benefits are added as Supercharging credits or Tesla Credits | Same sentence — the car decides which |
| Pays for | Supercharging, a new vehicle, a new Tesla-installed energy product, a service balance in the app, Tesla Shop, subscriptions, upgrades | Supercharging | Supercharging, upgrades, service appointments, Tesla Shop (the FAQ also lists a new vehicle purchase) |
| Doesn't pay for | Extended Service Agreement subscription, Tesla gift cards, alcohol | Anything other than Supercharging | Subscriptions such as Premium Connectivity; alcohol |
| Partial payment | Not restricted in the terms | — | Not allowed: you “must pay the entire cost of the purchase with Tesla Credits” |
| Where to see it | Menu → your name → Wallet → “Tesla Credits” card | Menu → Charging | Menu → your name → Wallet → “Tesla Credits” card |
| Expiry | 12 months after the Grant Date; email 30 days before | 12 months from the Grant Date; extended 12 months per new referral, up to 36 | 12 months after the Grant Date; email 30 days before |
US: Tesla Credits, and what they can pay for
Tesla's US FAQ lists seven uses: Supercharging, a new vehicle purchase, a new energy product purchase, an outstanding balance from a service appointment in the Tesla app, a Tesla Shop purchase, subscriptions and upgrades. For energy products there's a condition — credits apply only when the product is installed by Tesla.
The instruction that matters most is one line long: “To use your Tesla Credits, select ‘Tesla Credits’ as your payment method when making your payment.” Credits don't apply themselves.
What US credits can't pay for
Three exclusions are spelled out. Tesla Credits “cannot be used to make payments for the Extended Service Agreement subscription,” and a footnote says they are “not valid toward the purchase of Tesla gift cards or alcohol.” The same footnote says they “cannot be reissued, transferred or redeemed for cash.”
A note on the US buyer side: on Tesla's US referral page on Oct 3, 2026, the buyer benefit on Model 3, Model Y and Cybertruck was 3 months of Full Self-Driving (Supervised), and $400 off on solar panels and Powerwall. Neither is shown as a credit balance on that page. The “added as Tesla Credits” sentence is how the terms describe benefits in general; your app shows what actually landed.
UK: Supercharging credits or Tesla Credits, depending on the car
The UK terms say both referrer and buyer benefits are added “as Supercharging credits or Tesla Credits,” and that the vehicle purchased decides which. They don't publish a table of which car gives which. On Tesla's UK referral page on Sep 29, 2026, the buyer benefit on Model 3 and Model Y was 650 free Supercharging miles — so for a UK buyer of those two cars today, it's Supercharging credit.
The UK “pay the whole thing” rule
This is the line UK owners trip over:
If a customer wishes to redeem referral credits to pay for an outstanding balance from Supercharging, a service appointment in the Tesla app or a Tesla Shop or upgrade purchase, customers must pay the entire cost of the purchase with Tesla Credits.
So if a service bill is larger than your credit balance, the UK terms don't let you put the credits toward part of it and pay the rest by card. A smaller purchase that your balance covers in full is where UK Tesla Credits work.
A second UK footnote: “Tesla Credits granted in GBP can only be used to pay for Supercharging when the Supercharging cost is billed in GBP.” Credits earned in the UK don't pay for Supercharging billed in another currency.
Where each one shows in the app
Tesla Credits (US and UK).
Open the Tesla app, tap the top-right menu, tap your name, then “Wallet.” Tesla says you'll find “a card named ‘Tesla Credits’ with an expiration date.”
Supercharging credits (UK).
Open the Tesla app, tap the top-right menu, tap “Charging.” Tesla's UK FAQ adds: “Once Supercharging credits expire, they will no longer show up in the Tesla app.”
Pending referrer rewards.
After a friend orders, the reward appears as “pending” on your Refer and Earn screen until the Grant Date. It isn't spendable until then.
When each expires
Both terms use the same clock: 12 months after the Grant Date. Tesla's US terms don't define the Grant Date; the UK FAQ says it's “when you take delivery.” For Tesla Credits, Tesla says it emails you 30 days before any of them expire.
UK Supercharging credits have one extra rule: each new referral extends the expiry of all of them by 12 months, up to a maximum of 36 months, if the referred car is delivered before your current expiry date. The referrer rewards page has the full rule.
Why your credits weren't used
When a balance is sitting in the app but a bill went to your card, it's usually one of these:
- Tesla Credits weren't selected as the payment method. Tesla's terms say you have to choose them.
- UK only: the credits didn't cover the whole bill. The terms require the entire cost to be paid with Tesla Credits.
- The purchase is on an excluded list. US: Extended Service Agreement, gift cards, alcohol. UK: subscriptions such as Premium Connectivity, alcohol.
- UK only: the Supercharging was billed in another currency. GBP credits pay only for Supercharging billed in GBP.
- The reward is still pending. It becomes usable at the Grant Date.
- It expired. Expired UK Supercharging credits disappear from the app; check the Wallet card's date for Tesla Credits.
Other countries: what we haven't verified
We've read Tesla's referral pages for several other countries — Germany and Ireland show free Supercharging kilometers, Australia, New Zealand and Japan show money off — but not their full Refer and Earn terms. How rewards are added, what they can pay for and whether a partial-payment rule exists in those countries: not verified by us. Check the Refer and Earn page in your own country's Tesla support section, and the Wallet and Charging screens in your app.
Credits aren't cash
Both terms say benefits are “non-transferable and not redeemable for cash,” and that “all benefit redemptions are final - no returns or exchanges are accepted” (the UK adds “except where Tesla is legally required” to accept a return). Treat a referral balance as something to spend inside Tesla before its date, not as money. And one more line from both terms worth knowing: if benefits aren't used during the program, Tesla “reserve[s] the right to cancel the benefits once the program ends.”
Sources
Tesla's US Refer and Earn terms (Effective Aug 24, 2024; updated Feb 24, 2026; read in the Jun 15, 2026 archive copy) — FAQ “How are referrer or buyer benefits added?”, “How do I use my Tesla Credits?”, “When will my Tesla Credits expire?” and footnote 1; Tesla's UK Refer and Earn terms (Effective Sep 5, 2024; updated Jun 4, 2025; read in the Jun 12, 2026 archive copy) — Terms and Conditions, FAQ “How do I use my referrer or buyer benefits?” and footnote 1; Tesla's US referral page, as captured by the Internet Archive on Oct 3, 2026 (tesla.com blocks automated reading; every owner's referral page shows the same benefit cards). UK benefit: Tesla's UK referral page, Internet Archive copy of Sep 29, 2026.